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Barataria Bay Fishing Report

Updated Fri, Sep 4, 2026 from live gauge and weather data

Louisiana’s redfish factory: Barataria’s marsh maze grows bull reds and speckled trout south of New Orleans.

3/5
Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.
Next tide
High 4:32 AM
Air / High
82 / 84 F
Wind
N 1 mph

Sources: NOAA tides 8761724, Open-Meteo, solunar calculated for these coordinates.

Satellite view
Friday
4
September 2026

Today's Fishing Report

Generated this morning from live readings: gauge, weather model, sun and moon. A fresh report is published here every morning.

3/5Fair. Fish early or late.Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.

Barataria Bay stays in its summer rhythm: early magic, midday siesta, evening reprieve. Today brings cloud cover, wind N around 1 mph, steady pressure near 1013 hPa and a high of 84. Tides: high 3:28 AM, low 3:27 PM: the moving water either side of each change is when this place feeds. Water sits around 85 F for the season (estimated). With the last quarter, the solunar majors run 5:39 AM-7:39 AM and 5:39 PM-7:39 PM: plan around them and beat the heat.

The plan, species by species

Redfish (red drum)Excellent

Dawn topwater over grass flats and shorelines, then follow them to deeper guts and channel edges with gold spoons and paddletails. Look for wakes and nervous bait.

Speckled troutGood

First light topwater over grass and shell, then deeper: free-lined live shrimp or croaker over 4-8 ft structure. The bite dies with the sun; night lights fish well.

Tomorrow: Similar at 84 F with a rain chance. The solunar majors shift about 50 minutes later.Next report: Sat, Sep 5, 6:30 AMHow this report is made →

Water and weather

Live readings.

Tides

NOAA station 8761724 (Grand Isle). Fish the moving water either side of each change.

Fri
HIGH3:28 AM1.7 ft
LOW3:27 PM-0.0 ft
Sat
HIGH4:32 AM1.7 ft
LOW4:35 PM-0.1 ft

Right now

Latest readings

Air temp82 F
High / Low84 / 80 F
WindN 1-2 mph
Pressure1013.4 hPa, steady
Sky / Rain100% cloud, 43%
Sunrise / Sunset06:38 / 19:18
MoonLast Quarter, 50%
Water temp (seasonal)~85 F est.

Bite planner

Hour-by-hour bite forecast for today. Tap a bar to see why.

5 AM8 AM11 AM2 PM5 PM8 PMsunrisesunsetPRIMEPRIME

Next 7 days

Tap a day for the detailed outlook.

Fri Sep 4 · Overcast, 84/80 F, wind 12 mph, rain 43%

Fair or better. Cloud and a rain chance can stretch the morning bite well past breakfast: keep moving baits tied on.

Species guide

The species that matter on Barataria Bay: seasons, structure and how to fish each one. Today's ratings live in the report above.

Redfish (red drum) illustration

Redfish (red drum)

Best: Sep-Nov bull run

The copper-flanked king of the flats and surf: tailing in inches of water, schooling by the hundred in fall. Dawn topwater over grass flats and shorelines, then follow them to deeper guts and channel edges with gold spoons and paddletails. Look for wakes and nervous bait.

Speckled trout illustration

Speckled trout

Best: spring and fall

The Gulf coast's everyday obsession: soft mouths, violent topwater strikes and a fishery that lives by tide and bait. First light topwater over grass and shell, then deeper: free-lined live shrimp or croaker over 4-8 ft structure. The bite dies with the sun; night lights fish well.

When to come: the Barataria Bay calendar

Activity by species and month, and how the water warms through the year. Tap any cell.

Species activity by month

1 = slow, 5 = peak. Current month highlighted.

J
F
M
A
M
J
J
A
S
O
N
D
Redfish (red drum)
Speckled trout
SlowPeak

Water temperature through the year

Typical surface temperature for this water type; today is around 85 F (estimated, not a reading).

5060708090JanMarMayJulSepNovSep, ~85 F now

Angler reports

Real reports from real anglers, reviewed before publishing. The water log below tracks each day automatically.

No angler reports yet this weekBe the first: your report helps every angler who checks Barataria Bay today, and we feature the best catch of the week.

Water log, last days

Auto-logged from live data
Thu, Sep 3

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Redfish (red drum) led the card at excellent. High of 85 F, wind to 9 mph.

Wed, Sep 2

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Redfish (red drum) led the card at excellent. High of 86 F, wind to 7 mph.

Tue, Sep 1

3/5 Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows. Redfish (red drum) led the card at excellent. High of 86 F, wind to 18 mph.

Where roughly, what depth, what bait. Skip anything you want to keep secret.
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Before you go

License

Louisiana requires a valid fishing license for adults. Buy online from the state agency; one-day options exist for visitors.

Regulations

Louisiana license with saltwater endorsement. Redfish and speckled trout limits have changed in recent years: check current LDWF regulations.

Access

Ramps at Lafitte, Myrtle Grove, Grand Isle and along Bayou Lafourche; extensive guide fleet.

About this water

A marsh estuary south of New Orleans between the Mississippi River and Bayou Lafourche, Jefferson and Plaquemines parishes, Louisiana.

Fishing Barataria Bay: the full guide

A marsh that goes on forever

Barataria Bay spreads across the marsh south of New Orleans between the Mississippi River and Bayou Lafourche, a maze of ponds, bayous, cuts and islands that produces some of the best inshore fishing in the country. Redfish are the headline: from rat reds in the interior ponds to bull reds staging near the passes, with speckled trout, flounder, black drum and sheepshead alongside them.

Redfish in the marsh

The interior marsh fishes like a puzzle: work the ponds, cuts and drains on falling tides when bait flushes out, throwing spoons, plastics and topwater. Sight-fishing in clear winter water is spectacular. Bull redfish stack near the passes and the outer islands in fall, taking cracked crab and large plastics: fish over thirty pounds are routine.

Trout and the seasons

Speckled trout hold the deeper bayous, islands and the beaches near the passes: popping corks and plastics in spring and summer, moving into the interior canals in winter. Grand Isle sits at the seaward edge and offers surf and jetty fishing plus access to nearshore rigs. The variety means a blown-out day inshore usually still has a fishable corner.

Access and the disappearing coast

Ramps at Lafitte, Myrtle Grove, Grand Isle and along Bayou Lafourche serve the bay, with a large guide fleet. Navigation is genuinely difficult: the marsh changes as land is lost, and charts age quickly. Louisiana’s coastal land loss is visible here year over year, which is part of why local knowledge matters so much.

Common questions

How big do the bull reds get?

Fish over thirty pounds are routine near the passes in fall, taken on cracked crab and large soft plastics.

Is navigation hard?

Yes: the marsh is a maze and it physically changes as land is lost. GPS tracks and local knowledge both matter.

When is sight-fishing best?

Winter, when cold clears the water and redfish are visible in the shallow ponds: the marsh at its most spectacular.

Is fishing good at Barataria Bay right now?

Check the daily report at the top of this page: it is regenerated every morning from live data. Today's read: Fair. Fish early or late. Heat pins the bite to the dawn and dusk windows.

Nearby waters

Grand Isle8 miLake Pontchartrain57 miBiloxi96 miAtchafalaya Basin114 miDauphin Island126 miPascagoula River134 mi
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